Granit Xhaka staying at Arsenal could be blessing in disguise

Why Arsenal Keeping Granit Xhaka is Positive

Overall, it was a great showing from the midfielder on Sunday, and he capped off his performance with a fine header to drag Arsenal level. He received a warm welcome from the fans inside the Emirates stadium and he will again be a vital cog in the Gunners midfield this season. Watching him grab the badge as he did rubber-stamped his future as being in north London.

His consistent outings have been something that Arteta has been able to count on and even though his contract situation is not fully sorted yet, Xhaka will go about his business like the true professional he is.

Having him stay at the club is not the worst thing, at least for this year. If Arsenal does not get the fee it wants then he will stay, as the offers flung about so far are not even remotely representative of his ability. It now allows Arteta to build around having Xhaka a part of the squad instead of having to sign a replacement, now an extra body or two can be brought in to help shoulder the midfield load and finances can be focused elsewhere.

It was clear against Chelsea (and numerous times previously) that it isn’t right in any way to have Mohamed Elneny playing serious midfield minutes week in and week out, so depending on the outcome of Partey’s injury, a Xhaka/Lokonga tandem could be the way to go for the start of the campaign.

Get the pair playing together against Tottenham in a few days and then having the pair play the opening Premier League match against Brentford is perhaps the best-case scenario. While some fans are not thrilled with him staying, the fact is he is an important player whether we like it or not.

A true professional who goes about his business and puts in solid performances consistently, having Xhaka fit and firing is certainly better than relying on the likes of Elneny to play a host of games. If there are no better, accessible options out there then Arsenal shouldn’t be settling for second best. His sale should only be sanctioned if it enables the team to improve.

It is certainly not the end of the world now that Xhaka is staying as it could have left Arsenal very short on midfield options given the current state of the central midfield (Partey and Lokonga aside) which would not make for positive viewing.

Sealing his return to the team with a Man of the Match performance and a goal, Granit Xhaka could yet play a pivotal role in Arsenal’s 2021/22 Premier League season.